Table of Contents
Table of Contents
We’re starting to get quite a collection of posts and articles about specific topics and categories, so from now on I’m going to be adding them in groups on this section so people can find the things that interest them all in one place.
Archives:
All the posts arranged in chronological order from most recent, and by “most popular”.
About this site
Notes:
Substack’s version of social media. Short posts and comments on the Substack home page. Join us for free with an email address.
Two sub-sections
Sacred Images:
articles mainly for paid members who are or want to be more serious about learning about sacred art. This is where you’ll find supplementary articles to go with the course packages (coming soon!). Also “deep dives” into more specific topics like our two part exploration of two Umbrian Romanesque churches.
For love of Beauty - Philokalia:
articles and other material on the “lost” ancient Christian tradition of Mystical Theology - how contemplative prayer makes you a saint.
The posts
Carolingian (yet to come)
Insular/Hiberno-Saxon (yet to come)
Christian Spirituality and Mystical Theology
Byzantine: 330 - 1453
The "Fountain of Life"; let's read an icon (15 Apr 2023)
The eyes of Marko Rupnik: black "soulless" holes? (2 Feb 2024)
What Marko Rupnik's art tells us about the modern Catholic Church (9 Aug 2023)
Dura Europos: the oldest Christian art in the world? Searching for the roots of Byzantine style (9 Dec 2023)
Romanesque: 1000 - 1250
Two Romanesque churches - Part 2, Santa Maria Assunta (13 Feb, 2024 Paid)
Two Romanesque churches - Part 1, Santa Pudenziana (6 Feb, 2024 Paid)
Know your sacred art terms Part 3 - Romanesque stone carving (6 Dec, 2023)
Romanesque painting: Heaven in the room with you (16 Nov 2023)
Know your sacred art terms: What is "Romanesque"? (28 Oct 2023)
Duecento: 13th century Italian
Ecce Agnus Dei: 13th century Umbrian panel crucifixes (19 Aug 2023)
Trecento: 14th century Italian
Know Your Sacred Art Terms: What is Trecento painting? (15 Aug 2023)
Northern Gothic: 12th - 16th century
Late Northern Gothic: the Portinari Triptych (20 Dec 2023)
Let's read a Northern Gothic painting: the Virgin of the Dry Tree (24 Apr 2023)
The Gothic garden paradise (26 Apr 2023)
The Renaissance: 14th - 17th century
Lies the Renaissance told you Pt. 1 (12 Mar 2023)
Lies the Renaissance told you Pt 2 (17 Mar 2023)
No, The Renaissance, Man is not "the measure of all things," sit down (28 Jan 2024)
Art theory& symbolism: history, philosophy and theology
What does your Nativity Scene mean? (13 Dec 2023)
Going a Maying - the crown of the year: Lady Day in art, poetry and music (1 May 2023)
AI images: Whatever it is, it's not "sacred art" (19 Jun 2023)
Mary, Queen of Heaven or Tolkien's Varda, queen of the Valar? A conversation about AI and sacred art (23 Aug 2023)
Do not I hate them that hate thee, O Lord (31 Jan 2024)
Why is the baby Jesus holding a goldfinch? Animals in Christian art and cultural symbolism. (9 Mar 2023)
Deep Looking, drawing and the road to true prayer: How learning to draw what I saw taught me to pay more attention to God (29 Apr 2023)
Deep Looking: Part 1 - Why do we venerate celebrity paintings? (24 Jan, 2024 Paid)
Know your sacred art terms: what are "the Canons"? (15 Jan 2024)
Happy Trinity Sunday: The problem of depicting the un-seeable (12 Jun 2022)
Woe to him who calls ugliness beauty (24 Mar 2023)
The Queen and the Italian painter: Pietro Annigoni's manifesto for counterrevolution (14 Sept 2022)
Who killed art and why? Dadaism (17 Sept 2022)
The man who saved art: how the classical drawing tradition survived the 20th century Purge (8 Nov 2022)
...And the darkness comprehendeth it not...Why is the light of Christmas couched around with martyrdom? (30 Dec 2023)
Why iconography? The window to heaven: higher up and further in (4 Sept 2021)
Christian Spiritual Life: “Philokalia” - the love of beauty
For love of Beauty – Philokalia
Life in Narnia and Umbria
Life in Narnia: A prayer for the refreshment of the spirit (12 May 2022)
Happy Christmas from Narnia (24 Dec 2023)
Palm Sunday in Narnia (2 Apr 2023)
Take a hike up an ancient Narnian road: a beautiful sunny walk on a March afternoon (7 Mar 2022)
A triumph: how to make bay laurel liqueur (11 Mar 2022)
Wandering around Narnia: A day out in town (5 May 2023)
Chasing beauty in Florence (28 Mar 2023)
Market day in Narni: Buying handmade paper (7 May 2023)
Look to my coming at dawn...Happy Easter, everyone (8 Apr 2023)
Re-entering the world: Whichever door opens is the one to go through (24 Oct 2021)
World of Hilarity: how to use the site
How I found My Work: it's OK to not quit (26 Oct 2023)
Why I'm writing about Christian sacred art (10 Jun 2022)
Paid memberships are on: let's get started (22 Jan 2024)
Quite a year; bit of an odd decade: Becoming something new... with help (3 Mar 2023)
Source? -Recommendations for further reading & looking (30 Jan 2024)
Welcome, new people!: what we're about and how you can help (20 Apr 2023)
Things to come: high quality art prints (11 Aug 2023)
Introducing "Sacred Images": a place for students and teachers (10 Jan 2024)
Art and Christ [course]: a thousand years of Christian sacred art (5 Dec 2023)
An idea: in-depth, laser-focused mini-courses (30 Jan 2024)
New Year Plans: lets keep going: Courses, videos and hopes (31 Dec 2023)